1. Field of the Invention
Exemplary embodiments of the present invention relate to electronic messaging, and more particularly, to configuration of automatic responses to electronic messages.
2. Description of Background
In computer communication networks, one method of communication is electronic mail (email), in which a sending user prepares and sends a message over some form of computer network to a receiving user, usually on a remote system. Most email client applications, which are front-end computer programs that are typically used to maintain a message list identifying messages received for reading and processing by the recipient, also provide software to facilitate writing, replying to, forwarding, deleting, and filing emails. Because email messages can be sent at any time across the world as easily as across the office, to a group of people or a single recipient, without the user leaving his or her desk, email can provide considerable benefits over traditional paper based memos and postal systems. Email has become a ubiquitous means of communication for both business and personal use.
Many email client applications also include additional functions or utilities with configurable settings. These functions may provide for, for example, message filtering, message redirection, directing a copy of a message to be saved in a particular folder, automatic message signature settings, and autoresponders to generate automatic answers such as “out-of-office” or “vacation” reply messages in response to incoming messages on behalf of a recipient who does not expect be reading or only intermittently reading email. For example, during periods of travel for a user, out-of-office autoreply messages can be provided to inform the senders of incoming messages to an email address registered for the user that the messages are unlikely to be read, or acted on, in a timely manner. This is typically implemented by allowing users to specify a variety of parameters such as the time period during which the user is away, the content of the out-of-office autoreply, the list of users to whom the out-of-office autoreply is to be sent if mail is received from them, and the like. A user of such a client application can thus enable or disable an out-of-office autoreply message setting for sending a pre-composed reply email message from an email address registered for the user in response to a message addressed to the email address being received by the client application. Such out-of-office autoreply message settings are typically configurable on a personal computer via a client email application, such as, for example, Microsoft Outlook or IBM's Lotus Notes.
While autoreply messages can be useful for their intended purpose, the configuration and management of the settings for such messages can be a nuisance. The settings must be manually configured each time a change is desired in the manner of handling communications when the intended receiver does not wish to be interrupted or is otherwise unavailable. Situations can arise in which a user is unable to access the email client application used to maintain his or her email account through a terminal or client system. For instance, the email server for the client application may be implemented behind an organizational firewall that does not permit access through external networks, and the user may suddenly fall sick and be unable to go to the office to access the email server through the internal network, in which case the user will be unable to configure the out-of-office autoreply message settings.
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide a mechanism for remotely controlling out-of-office autoreply message settings for an email account when direct access to the client application for the email account is not available.